Warning: this post is not for those with a fear of insects. Come to think of, it is not for those with a fear of musical instruments either. The two – insects and musical instruments, not people with a fear of them – are boldly juxtaposed in a spectacularly inventive branding scheme for Copenhagen-based fashion store ParisTexas. The design above, for example, genetically splices a beetle, the kind you’ll find crawling around your backyard, with a trumpet, the kind you’ll find in the brass section of an orchestra.

Denmark-based design agency Scandinavian DesignLab were set the challenge of creating a distinct and unique identity for the clothing retailer that would set a new trend rather than follow a pre-existing one, representing the originality of ParisTexas’ clothing line. “The assignment involved creating an identity that breaks with the traditional thinking behind identities and by extension supports a sense of unique, international exclusivity and underground style,” explains the design agency’s official website.

I think you’ll agree with me when I say they have succeeded – have you ever seen anything like this? Well, not in a David Cronenberg movie, I mean. If you don’t suffer from entomophobia or melophobia (google them), check out the rest of Scandinavian DesignLab’s series below. [Read more…]

Don’tcha hate it when your earphone wires get all tangled up? You place them in your trouser pocket for all of five seconds and voila, you’ve got a thousand knots to untie. Well, take a look at these unholy tangles, which form to create gorgeously illustrated portraits. You may recognise a few famous faces here.

Part of a pen-to-paper art project entitled ‘iEarphones,’ the pieces include a portrait of Beatle member John Lennon, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, a tyrannosaurus rex and a lady (warning: a nude lady) with the hair of Medusa, though instead of snakes slithering atop her head it’s – you guessed it – earphones.

The earphone wires appear to be that of the Apple iPod, and they are skillfully drawn by Canada-based artist Bashir Sultani. Below, you can see a video taking us through the making of the John Lennon picture, and below that is Sultani’s project in full. Now if you don’t mind, I’m gonna go browse eBay for some wireless headphones, ‘cos I’m tired of all this untangling crap. [Read more…]

Screw those regular old boring flowers you can see sticking out from the bottom of your front garden: these liquid flowers are much more interesting, and some would say even more gorgeous. Using a combination of high speed photography and painstakingly precise splashes of falling paint, Wisconsin-born artist Jake Long is able to capture these utterly stunning floral figures, some of which are even standing in pots (also constructed from fast-moving droplets of paint hurtling through the air).

The paint itself is made of water mixed with thickeners, pigments and dyes, and is used to construct leaves, stems, petals and pots. Long is tight-lipped about his exact methods of capturing these blooming marvelous liquid flowers, but he has stated that they take months of planning and testing until the final result is ready to be photographed. I think you’ll agree all those months have paid off in spectacular, jaw-dropping fashion. [Read more…]